New law enhances residents' rights in residential care facilities for elderly

By Katie Nelson knelson@mercurynews.com

Posted:
07/23/2014 05:35:53 PM PDT

Updated:
07/23/2014 05:49:15 PM PDT

SACRAMENTO -- Residential care facilities for the elderly will soon have greater representation among their residents, thanks to a bill Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law Wednesday.

AB1572, authored by Assemblywoman Susan Eggman, D-Stockton, requires a residential care facility for the elderly to help residents establish and maintain a resident council when two or more residents request it. The original requirement stated that a council would only be created if a majority of residents requested it.

The bill also mandates that facilities respond to resident council concerns in writing, to inform residents about the council and its activities, to respond to concerns raised by family councils and to include notice of the family council.

The bill is one of two Eggman bills in a package of bills known as the RCFE Reform Act of 2014. Her other piece of legislation, AB1571, would require care facility operators to provide more detailed information to their residents and to the state Department of Social Services. AB1571 would also mandate the department make available online extensive detailed information about and eventually establish a ratings system for care homes.

The package of bills was introduced less than three months after 19 residents at Valley Springs Manor in Castro Valley were left in the hands of a janitor and a cook after the department abruptly shuttered the facility. The operators of Valley Springs Manor have since had their license to operate a care facility in California revoked.